A short, sharp “fire-break” will be introduced across Wales at
the end of this week to help regain control of coronavirus, First
Minister announced today.
The fortnight-long action is needed to save lives and prevent the
NHS from being overwhelmed.
Speaking to the people of Wales, the First Minister said: “This
is the moment to come together; to play our part in a common
endeavour to protect the NHS and save lives. This will not be
easy, but we will do it together.”
The fire-break will start at 6pm on Friday 23 October and end on
Monday 9 November. It will apply to everyone living in Wales and
will replace the local restrictions which are in force in some
parts of the country.
The Welsh Government will provide a package of almost £300m to
support businesses, which will complement wage-support schemes
available from the UK Government.
Cases of coronavirus have been rising sharply in Wales as the
virus has woken up for winter. While the national and local
measures put in place across Wales have helped to keep the spread
of the virus in check, there is a growing consensus that
additional action is now needed.
Between October 9 and 15, there were 4,127 new confirmed cases of
coronavirus recorded by Public Health Wales, based on positive
test results but the real level of infections will be much
higher. The number of people admitted to hospital with
coronavirus symptoms is growing daily and sadly so too are the
number of people dying with coronavirus.
The R number is currently between 1.1 and 1.4, meaning continued
exponential growth in the number of cases and the seven-day
rolling incidence rate for Wales stands at more than 130 cases
per 100,000 population.
The fire-break will be short but sharp to have a maximum impact
on the virus.
- People must stay at home, except for very limited purposes,
such as for exercise.
- People must work from home wherever possible;
- People must not visit other households or meet other people
they do not live with either indoors and outdoors;
- No gatherings will be allowed outdoors, such as Halloween or
fireworks/Bonfire night or other organised activities;
- All non-food retail, hospitality businesses, including cafes,
restaurants and pubs (unless they provide take-away or delivery
services), close contact services, such as hairdressers and
beauticians, and events and tourism businesses, such as hotels
must close;
- Community centres, libraries and recycling centres will be
required to close;
- Face coverings must be worn in indoor public spaces, which
remain open, including on public transport and in taxis.
During this time:
- Adults living alone or single parents will be able to join
with one other household for support;
- Primary and special schools will re-open as normal after
half-term
- Secondary schools will re-open after the half-term for
children in years seven and eight and most vulnerable children.
Pupils will be able to come in to take exams but other pupils
will continue their learning from home for an extra week.
- Universities will provide a blend of in-person and online
learning;
- NHS and health services will continue to operate;
- Local parks, playgrounds and outdoor gyms will remain open.
Following the end of the fire-break, a new set of national rules
will be introduced, covering how people can meet and how the
public sector and businesses operate.
Businesses affected by the firebreak will be supported with a new
£300m fund, which will open next week:
- Every business covered by the small business rates relief
will receive a £1,000 payment.
- Small and medium-sized retail, leisure and hospitality
businesses, which have to close will receive a one-off payment of
up to £5,000.
- There will also be additional discretionary grants and
support for smaller businesses, which are struggling.
- The £80m fund announced last week to help businesses develop
in the longer term, will be increased to £100m, which includes
£20m ring-fenced for tourism and hospitality.
Businesses will also be able to access the support available
through the existing Job Retention Scheme or the new expanded Job
Support Scheme.
The First Minister has written to the Chancellor to ask him to
give Welsh businesses early access to the new expanded Job
Support Scheme from Friday. The Welsh Government has offered to
pay the extra costs to the UK Government scheme to ensure
businesses can retain staff.
First Minister said:
“It is with a heavy heart that I once again ask everyone to
stay at home and businesses to shut.
“We are all tired of coronavirus and the many rules and
regulations we all have to live with. We all want to see an end
to this pandemic and our lives returned to us. Unfortunately,
we do not yet have a vaccine, which will allow us to do that.
“This fire-break is our best chance of regaining control of the
virus and avoiding a much-longer – and damaging – national
lockdown. We have a small window of opportunity to act.
“To be successful, we need everyone’s help. Wales has shown
throughout this pandemic that we can come together and take the
actions to keep our families and our communities safe.
“We must come together once again to stay ahead of this virus
and to save lives.”
